Trump Is Counting On SCOTUS To Save Him, But He Shouldn't
![Trump Is Counting On SCOTUS To Save Him, But He Shouldn't](https://www.podcastworld.io/podcast-images/the-heartland-pod-sat5a484.webp)
SHOW NOTES
TALKIN’ POLITICS
Welcome to Missouri where our GOP supermajority puts the FUN in dysfunction.
Quick Hit: Post Dobbs case rape related pregnancies https://www.lonestarlive.com/news/2024/01/texas-has-the-most-rape-related-pregnancies-of-any-state-with-total-abortion-ban.html
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2022, 14 states have instituted total abortion bans. Between July 2022 and January 2024, an estimated 65,000 women and girls in these states became pregnant as a result of rape, according to the study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.
GOP proposing a move that let’s them move past democracy as a party and just declare a winner, which is really super cool:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/25/politics/rnc-trump-presumptive-nominee-resolution/index.html
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
A flyover from this week's top heartland stories including:
Missouri GOP in-fighting in full swing | In Iowa there’s something in the water… poop | Missouri Medicaid enrollees trapped in a nightmare | Kari Lake leaks a tape | CO House ditches Minority Leader Mike Lynch | Iowa anthem antics | Ted Cruz’s Democratic challenger in Texas | Missouri Senator Nick Schroer is a joke
SOURCES: The Heartland Collective, Colorado News Line, Missouri Independent, New York Times, Iowa Capitol Dispatch
Weekend plans?
Welp that’s it for this week. Stories in today’s show can be accessed at the Heartland Collective, Colorado Newsline, Missouri Independent, New York Times, Iowa Capitol Dispatch
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
U.S. House Representative Colin Allred (D-Dallas) is the leading Democrat to take on Ted Cruz this November. Does the Democrat have any chance of unseating Lyin' Ted? Sean and Rachel look at election results from Democrats Beto O'Rourke and Joe Biden for recent clues.
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
TALKIN’ POLITICS
Quick Hit: Memphis area bank hit for discriminatory red lining practices… in 2023 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/patriot-bank-pay-1-9m-211421738.html
2024 Election Coverage Era
That’s when the MONEY really begins to matter
NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/15/us/politics/biden-fundraising-democrats.html
Biden has BY FAR the most cash on hand
Haley’s $ is not that far off from Trump
Last Call - NO LABELS
No labels gets sued https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/18/third-party-file-complaint-no-labels-2024-election
Phillips courting no labels https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/20/us/politics/dean-phillips-no-labels-biden.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Friday News Flyover, January 19, 2024
Oil train delayed | Abortion rights advocates speak with Senators | Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly and GOP-dominated legislature’s priorities | and OH Sen. Sherrod Brown and MO Rep. Jason Smith make big bi-partisan deal on Child Tax Credit
If you’re new to our shows make sure you subscribe and leave a 5 star rating wherever you listen. You can also find Heartland POD content on Youtube and on social media @ THE heartland pod, and learn more at thehearltandcollective.com
This train is not leaving the station
Forest Service withdraws key permit for controversial Utah oil-train project opposed by Coloradans
Project would dramatically increase hazardous shipments through Colorado communities
BY: CHASE WOODRUFF - JANUARY 18, 2024 9:18 AM
A controversial Utah oil-train proposal opposed by Colorado communities and environmentalists was dealt another blow this week when the U.S. Forest Service withdrew a key permit for the project.
In an announcement published Wednesday, Ashley National Forest Supervisor Susan Eickhoff blocked the issuance of a permit to the Uinta Basin Railway to construct 12 miles of railroad track through a protected area of the national forest in northeast Utah. The stretch of track in question is part of the proposed railway’s 88-mile connection between the oil fields of eastern Utah’s Uinta Basin and the existing national rail network.
The project has drawn fierce opposition from Coloradans. A federal “downline analysis” estimated that 90% of the resulting oil-train traffic — as many as five fully loaded, two-mile-long trains of crude oil tankers per day — would be routed through environmentally sensitive and densely populated areas in Colorado, en route to oil refineries on the Gulf Coast. The oil trains would more than quadruple the amount of hazardous materials being shipped by rail through many Colorado counties.
Colorado’s Eagle County and five environmental groups sued to overturn the Uinta Basin Railway’s approval, and in August 2023 a panel of federal judges ruled that the approval process contained “numerous” and “significant” violations of the National Environmental Policy Act. The ruling vacated portions of the project’s environmental impact statement and ordered the federal Surface Transportation Board to redo its analysis of key environmental risks.
Because the Forest Service’s decision in August 2022 to grant a right-of-way permit to the project was based on that flawed analysis, the agency has withdrawn its decision pending further proceedings at the STB.
Ted Zukoski, senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the groups that sued to block the project. “This is wonderful news for the roadless forest in Utah’s Indian Canyon and the wildlife who call it home. It’s a victory for the Colorado River and nearby communities that would be threatened by oil train accidents and spills. If the oil train’s backers attempt to revive this dangerous scheme, we’ll be there to fight it again.”
In a press release, Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado, who had urged multiple federal agencies to put a stop to the project, applauded the Forest Service’s move.
“A derailment along the headwaters of the Colorado River could have catastrophic effects for Colorado’s communities, water, and environment. I’m glad the Forest Service has taken this important step to protect the Colorado River and the tens of millions of people who depend on it.”
U.S. Senators and Abortion Rights Advocates Discuss State Abortion Access Limitations
BY: JENNIFER SHUTT - JANUARY 17, 2024
WASHINGTON — During a Capitol Visitors Center briefing, abortion rights advocates and Democratic U.S. Senators called for reinstating legal and safe abortion access nationwide. The nearly three-hour session featured physicians discussing the difficulties faced in states with restrictive abortion laws following the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Dr. Austin Dennard, a Texas OB-GYN involved in a lawsuit against the state's abortion laws, spoke about the validity and personal nature of each abortion decision. He highlighted patients' fears about family planning in states with restrictive laws, noting the adverse impact on what should be a joyful life chapter.
The briefing preceded the annual anti-abortion March for Life, with U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Chris Smith scheduled to speak. Senate Democrats criticized efforts to limit abortion access and discussed two upcoming Supreme Court cases with significant implications.
One case focuses on mifepristone, a key medication in abortion and miscarriage treatments, while the other revolves around the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA). The Biden administration argues that EMTALA should protect doctors performing abortions as emergency medical treatment in states with strict anti-abortion laws.
Dr. Serina Floyd, a Washington, D.C. OB-GYN and Physicians for Reproductive Health fellow, expressed confusion over Republican efforts to target EMTALA, emphasizing the potential life-saving importance of emergency abortion care. She noted research indicating severe consequences for patients denied abortion access, including health risks, economic hardship, and staying in violent relationships.
Dr. Floyd advocated for non-interference from the government in medical decisions, stressing that patients are capable of making informed choices about their health and lives with their healthcare providers.
Senator Patty Murray of Washington highlighted her state's influx of abortion patients from restrictive states like Idaho. Murray and other senators at the briefing expressed concern that residents in states with abortion protections might not realize the impact of a potential nationwide abortion ban or Supreme Court decisions.
Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan pointed out that even states with constitutional reproductive rights, like Michigan, are not fully shielded from the effects of a national abortion ban. After hearing doctors' testimonies, Stabenow expressed astonishment at the challenges facing both physicians and women needing abortion access, questioning the progress made in women's rights, asking, “is it 2024 or are we back in 1984?”
Kansas Legislature Fast-Tracks Tax Reform Opposed by Governor Kelly
BY: TIM CARPENTER - JANUARY 17, 2024
TOPEKA — Kansas Republican legislative leaders are expediting a tax reform bill focusing on income and sales tax changes, including a single-rate state income tax of 5.25%, which Democratic Governor Laura Kelly has threatened to veto.
The bill, bypassing regular committee processes, is set for early-session debate in the Senate.
The proposed tax overhaul would lead to a state revenue reduction exceeding $1.5 billion over three years, surpassing Governor Kelly's proposed $1 billion cut. The plan to implement a flat tax rate of 5.25%, replacing Kansas' three-rate income tax structure, has been met with opposition from Governor Kelly because it disproportionately benefits the wealthy.
The bill also proposes eliminating the state income tax on Social Security benefits, aligning with Kelly's proposal. Additionally, it seeks to remove the state sales tax on groceries starting April 1, advancing the timeline from the previously set January 1, 2025. The measure includes an exemption for the first $100,000 in state property taxes from all Kansas homeowners for school finance purposes, adjustable for inflation.
Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, both Republicans, view the bill as a compromise, claiming it addresses issues faced by retirees and families while tackling inflation.
Governor Kelly vetoed two major tax reform bills in 2023, which the Republican-dominated Legislature couldn't override.
“We must get that money back into Kansans’ pockets — and we will — in a fiscally responsible and targeted way,” Kelly said. “In a way that doesn’t threaten progress on all the other issues Kansans care about. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what one proposal — the flat tax — would do. ”
Kansas’ Governor Kelly calls for hearing on Medicaid expansion bill that would cover 150,000 Kansans
BY: RACHEL MIPRO - JANUARY 17, 2024 2:35 PM
TOPEKA — A Medicaid expansion proposal has been enrolled into state House and Senate committees despite continued opposition from top legislative Republicans.
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who has spent the months leading up to the legislative session rallying across the state for Medicaid expansion, called for a hearing on the bill by Jan. 29.
“It’s easy to sum up the Cutting Healthcare Costs for All Kansans Act: health care coverage for 150,000 Kansans, cost savings for everyone else. We protect our rural hospitals, and Kansas taxpayers pay nothing extra,” Kelly said in a Wednesday announcement of the proposal’s enrollment. “The legislature should listen to the over 70% of Kansans who support Medicaid Expansion and give this bill a hearing by Kansas Day.”
Rep. Vic Miller, D-Topeka, introduced the bill in the House Appropriations Committee and on the Senate side, Sen. Pat Pettey, D- Kansas City, introduced the bill into the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
“Medicaid expansion is not only popular, but it saves lives, creates jobs and saves our rural hospitals. Hardworking Kansans shouldn’t die because of legislative inaction,” Miller said.
Medicaid expansion would unlock $700 million in annual federal funding and could potentially save 59 rural hospitals at risk of closing. Kelly unveiled her latest Medicaid expansion package in December, but Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins remain opposed to expansion, calling the move a way to expand the “welfare state.”
Lawmakers last came close to expansion in 2020, when former Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning worked out a bipartisan deal with Kelly. But the deal fell apart as Republicans, outraged by a Kansas Supreme Court ruling that established a constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy, focused on placing a constitutional amendment on abortion before voters instead,
Child Tax Credit and Business Incentives Merged in New Tax Proposal
BY: ASHLEY MURRAY - JANUARY 16, 2024
WASHINGTON — Leading members of Congress released a bipartisan, bicameral tax proposal Tuesday, promising a middle-path deal to help low-income families and provide incentives for businesses as Trump-era tax breaks expire.
The framework led by U.S. Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon and Republican Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri would raise the child tax credit incrementally through 2025 and restore tax relief for affordable housing projects.
The three-year proposal would also make exempt disaster payments to wildfire victims and to those who suffered losses after the massive train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
Sen. Wyden, chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, said in a statement that “(f)ifteen million kids from low-income families will be better off as a result of this plan, and given today’s miserable political climate, it’s a big deal to have this opportunity to pass pro-family policy that helps so many kids get ahead.”
Democrats have been pushing to permanently raise the tax credit that low-income families receive per child after a temporary increase during the COVID-19 pandemic illustrated significant reductions in child poverty.
Wyden also praised the deal’s potential to spur affordable housing construction and said that his goal “remains to get this passed in time for families and businesses to benefit in this upcoming tax filing season, and I’m going to pull out all the stops to get that done.”
Rep. Jason Smith, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said “American families will benefit from this bipartisan agreement that provides greater tax relief, strengthens Main Street businesses, boosts our competitiveness with China, and creates jobs.”
“We even provide disaster relief and cut red tape for small businesses, while ending a COVID-era program that’s costing taxpayers billions in fraud. This legislation locks in over $600 billion in proven pro-growth, pro-America tax policies with key provisions that support over 21 million jobs. I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this legislation,” Smith continued in a statement Tuesday.
And for those who file 1099 forms, a provision tucked away in the framework would increase the threshold to file to $1,000 from the current $600.
The proposal won praise from across the tax policy spectrum.
Business Roundtable, an advocacy organization representing a wide range of U.S. CEOs, described the deal’s pitch to revive expired pro-business policies as “critical to strengthening America’s global competitiveness.”
Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat and key supporter of the child tax credit, urged his colleagues to pass the deal, calling it a “win-win for Ohio families and Ohio manufacturers.”
Sen. Brown said, “The deal’s expansion of the Child Tax Credit will help parents keep up with the rising cost of living and ensure that their hard work pays off. The business provisions will support American companies that invest in our nation’s research and manufacturing. The deal also ensures that residents of East Palestine won’t get hit with a surprise tax bill for payments they received from Norfolk Southern after last year’s derailment.”
Pretty, pret-ty good.
Welp that’s it for me, from Denver I’m Sean Diller. Stories in today’s show can be found in the Missouri Independent, Ohio Capital Journal, Kansas Reflector and Michigan Advance. Thanks for listening, see you next time.
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Information on Missouri Jobs For Justice
https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/support-missouri-jobs-with-justice-voter-action
Learn more at www.theheartlandcollective.com and find Glenn directly with laborfront.com
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
TALKIN’ POLITICS
Quick Hit: Missouri GOP working extra to move public school funding to private hands
Special special Trump moment
https://x.com/atrupar/status/1746621767030812834?s=46&t=mukZUfs5M_R3E9tAHIu-GA
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Friday Flyover of politics and elections news from America's heartland | TX GOP Rep Chip Roy says he'd boot MAGA Mike over funding bill | Missouri Sec of State on track to waste more money and lose more court cases | Lauren Boebert switches districts, CO GOP Rep Doug Lamborn announces retirement
SOURCES: The Heartland Collective, Axios, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Missouri Independent, Fox17 WZTV Nashville, Iowa Capitol Dispatch
Driving the news: A dozen right-wing House Republicans blocked a package of their party's bills and ground the House floor to a sudden halt on Wednesday in protest of Johnson's spending deal with Senate Democrats.
Closing Note: Doing anything this weekend?
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Renew Missouri info: https://renewmo.org/
US Ag Department report on Inflation Reduction Act
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Leslie Jones social and website information
https://www.upballot.com/leslie-jones/issues/
https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/149420
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091736786812
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Flyover Friday, December 22, 2023
SOURCES: The Heartland Collective, Wisconsin Examiner, Missouri Independent, River Front Times, Kansas Reflector
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
PAT GAROFALO
Pat Garofalo is the Director of State and Local Policy at the American Economic Liberties Project. Pat is the author of The Billionaire Boondoggle: How Our Politicians Let Corporations and Bigwigs Steal Our Money and Jobs. Prior to joining Economic Liberties, Pat served as managing editor for Talk Poverty at the Center for American Progress.
Previously, Pat was assistant managing editor for opinion at U.S. News & World Report and economic policy editor at ThinkProgress, and his work has also appeared in The Atlantic, The Nation, The Guardian, and The Week, among others.
You can reach Pat at pgarofalo@economicliberties.us.
Article: https://boondoggle.substack.com/p/google-and-how-the-antitrust-sausage
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
True or False
The progressive purity tests are hamstringing pragmatic solutions on abortion in Missouri.
Contact PP: https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-great-plains
Yeah… No
Another abhorrent story of criminalizing women for being pregnant while stripping away their access to health care comes out of Ohio this time
From article: Brittany Watts was still hooked to an IV, sick for almost a week from a potentially fatal miscarriage, when a detective from the Warren Police Department in Ohio stepped into her hospital room. He assured her that she wasn’t in any trouble.
For more than an hour, Detective Nick Carney interviewed Watts, 33, about the details of that morning and the whereabouts of the nearly 22-week-old fetus that was declared nonviable two days earlier. As Watts described miscarrying in her bathroom, a nurse at Mercy Health — St. Joseph Warren Hospital rubbed her shoulders and told her everything would be okay, Watts told The Washington Post in a series of text messages.
Comes on the heels of learning that SCOTUS is taking up a case on Mifepristone access
And of course Texas continue to Texas: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/12/texas-abortion-ken-paxton-kate-cox?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Big One:
Final pre-new year Trumpdate
Nice summary of last few days from The Independent
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-fraud-trial-latest-news-b2464611.html
Verdict on Fraud Case:
Not to be lost in all of this: Rudy is gonna get HAMMERED in Georgia case
https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4361916-cnn-giuliani-defense-georgia-election-workers/
Evangelical leader in Iowa says not so fast on Trump still being the new Jesus https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4361876-top-evangelical-leader-doesnt-believe-poll-showing-strong-trump-support-iowa/
Good account for updates
https://x.com/muellershewrote/status/1735697906819359075?s=46&t=mukZUfs5M_R3E9tAHIu-GA
Steve Martin’s One Holiday wish:
Rachel:
Sean:
Adam: My holiday wish is for Americans to sit back, look at their families and friends at the gatherings and realize that we are living in a place and time where the only thing standing in the way of universal access to health care, living wages, and a rising tide of prosperity is the hubris and greed of the billionaires so many treat as demi-gods and start putting their neighbor’s over the hate and rhetoric - I would also like a pre-war Martin D-18 in mint condition
LAST CALL
The Missouri First District Democratic Primary for Congress
https://www.cnn.com/election/2022/results/missouri/democratic-primaries/us-house-district-1
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Flyover Friday, December 15, 2023
Intro: On this episode of The Heartland POD for Friday, December 15th, 2023
A flyover from this weeks top heartland stories including:
Welcome to The Heartland POD for a Flyover Friday, this is Sean Diller in Denver, Colorado. With me as co-host today is Adam Sommer, how you doing Adam?
We’re glad to have you with us. If you’re new to our shows make sure you subscribe and leave a 5 star rating wherever you listen. You can also find Heartland POD content on Youtube and on social media with @ THE heartland pod, and learn more at thehearltandcollective.com
SEAN: Speaking of - the website over at THE HEARTLAND COLLECTIVE DOT COM - if you have not yet checked it out, it is full of not just shows but articles too, including a recent on on abortion laws by Rachel Parker, really sharp stuff.
ADAM: Yeah, hats off to you and the team, shout out my and special thanks to Allyn for all the work, I think folks will like what they find over there at the site, and that article by Rachel goes great with the pod from Wednesday which was Rachel with Jess Piper and Laura Belin was back from Bleeding Heartland, a powerhouse group of women talking about abortion laws, absolutely not to be missed.
SEAN: Plus, we’re back in the saddle this coming week with the LAST CALL shows, which are for members only, we have a lot of fun on those shows and that’s for patreon members, you can sign up today, $5 per month unlocks that feature, go to THE HEARTLAND COLLECTIVE DOT COM and click the button to sign up today to join us for those member only bonus shows.
Alright! Let’s get into the stories
SOURCES: Wisconsin Examiner, Missouri Independent, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Ohio Capital Journal, Colorado Newsline; Indiana Capitol Chronicle
Rep. Sarah Unsicker has pulled out of the Dem AG primary after a two week period in which she appears to have had serious issues pop up
Very odd turn of events, disgusting anti-semetic smears and a final move of a Dark Night jOker like video
Missouri Dem leader and candidate for Governor, Crystal Quade, is taking the charge on the abortion issue in Missouri.
https://x.com/crystal_quade/status/1735330641967759416?s=20
Sen. Josh Hawley (drop) has failed to include funding for nuclear waste cleanup for Missourians.
https://missouriindependent.com/2023/12/12/defense-radioactive-senate-st-lous/
Wisconsin Secretary of State calls for removal of fake elector who was part of 2020 scheme for Donald Trump
https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2023/12/11/wisconsin-secretary-of-state-calls-for-removal-of-election-commissioner-who-served-as-fake-elector/
Wisconsin Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski and the two Democrats on the Senate elections committee are calling for Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) to remove state elections commissioner Robert Spindell from his position.
Democrats are calling for Spindell’s removal because he served as a fake elector following the 2020 presidential election, casting a false Electoral College vote for former President Donald Trump despite Joe Biden’s victory in the state. Last week, Spindell and the nine other Republicans who joined him settled a lawsuit against them for their actions — stating publicly that Biden had won the election and agreeing not to serve as electors for Trump again.
On Monday, Godlewski said Wisconsinites can’t trust Spindell to have a say in how the state’s elections are run.
“Wisconsin Election Commissioner Robert Spindell Jr. admitted that he was not a qualified 2020 presidential elector and co-signed a fraudulent Certificate of Votes and submitted them to my office,” Godlewski said in a statement. “That unlawful certificate was used as part of a larger scheme to overturn the election. The people of Wisconsin cannot trust the integrity and moral compass of Commissioner Spindell to administer our elections. Senator LeMahieu should immediately remove him from Wisconsin’s Election Commission.”
Democrats on the Senate elections committee, Sens. Jeff Smith (D-Eau Claire) and Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit) said Monday that Spindell’s admission that he participated in an effort to overturn the election results should be enough for him to resign or for LeMahieu to remove him.
“Bob Spindell has continued to serve without any repercussions for his actions and statements celebrating lower turnout and successful voter suppression,” the two senators said in a statement. “Now, Bob Spindell has admitted his involvement in the scheme to illegally overturn the 2020 presidential election, and it is abundantly clear that the Senate Majority Leader’s excuses and deflections must come to an end. Bob Spindell has admitted to signing and sending false documents claiming that he was a presidential elector for the state of Wisconsin. If there were any remaining questions about whether Bob Spindell should go, they were answered when he finally acknowledged that he signed falsified documents submitted to public officials despite President Joe Biden winning the 2020 election in Wisconsin. Bob Spindell should resign. If he doesn’t, Senator LeMahieu must remove him. We understand the Wisconsin Elections Commission is made up of partisan appointees, but surely Senator LeMahieu can find a different Republican who didn’t attempt to illegally overturn a presidential election. The people of Wisconsin deserve better than Bob Spindell.”
Democratic Rep. Keri Ingle of Lee’s Summit calls for removal of STL area Shrewsberry Rep. Unsicker from Democratic caucus in Missouri
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/government-politics/missouri-house-democrat-calls-for-ouster-of-shrewsbury-state-rep-from-caucus/article_8b475036-9945-11ee-b25d-e3f3e17972df.html
Rep. Keri Ingle, D-Lee’s Summit, said in a news release that state Rep. Sarah Unsicker of Shrewsbury “failed to denounce” antisemitic attacks, as well as accusations that members of their caucus worked for the Israeli government, in a recent livestreamed conversation with conspiracy theorists.
Her press release said Democratic caucus leadership should “begin the process” of removing her.
“As long as she persists in enabling and spreading this kind of rhetoric, I believe my Democratic colleagues must take swift action to uphold our caucus’ commitment to fight and confront hate and intolerance by ousting her from our ranks,” Ingle said.
Her press release added that Unsicker had helped “propagate hateful, antisemitic, and conspiratorial and racist rhetoric which has hurt people and sparked online harassment campaigns.”
Ohio Legislation for so called “Parent’s Bill Of Rights” gets push back
https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/12/13/counselors-psychologists-and-school-officials-speak-out-against-parents-bill-of-rights/
Dozens, including school counselors and psychiatrists, testified Tuesday against a bill in the Ohio Senate that would force schools to notify parents on “sexuality” content, and possibly on a student’s sexuality, calling it “censorship” and potentially risky for students.
“Young people are people who are entitled to their own privacy,” said Mallory Golski, of the Kaleidoscope Youth Center. “Young people are people who should have the freedom to read stories that reflect their own lives and experiences.”
Ohio House Bill 8 could be up for a vote this week, as the bill seeks to put the control of education more into parent’s hands, by allowing them to opt out of certain curricula based on the “sexuality” content. According to one of the bill’s sponsors, state Rep. D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron, school districts would also be “prohibited from keeping changes in the health of the student from their parent, and the school district is also prohibited from encouraging the student to hide these issues from their parents.”
Amanda Erickson, also of the Kaleidoscope Youth Center, worried about the impact the bill will have on teachers, who may not only be required to speak with parents about information they were told by a student, but could also be impacted themselves, based on their own life choices.
Erickson herself trained as a teacher, before she moved on to the nonprofit sector after graduation. A career in a classroom did not appeal to her after the efforts of the Ohio legislature, now and in the past.
“Why would I want to be a teacher in Ohio when my legislators are so obsessed with gender and sexuality that they do not have time to pass legislation that would actually improve our schools,” Erickson asked of the Senate Education Committee.
Erickson also argued that the law might ban her and others from putting family pictures on her desk, as it might suggest a discussion she’s not allowed to have.
“Since this bill does not define ‘sexual concepts’ or ‘gender ideology,’ there are those who would argue that my wedding photo or the questions it could prompt would qualify as one or the other,” Erickson said.
The committee heard from some that currently are in the education field with members of the Ohio School Psychologists Association and the Ohio School Counselor Association both submitting in opposition to the bill, saying the bill is “not workable,” and ignores parents as an already “key tenet” in a student’s education.
The Missouri and Kansas border war went from civil war to friendly sports rivalry, and is reemerging as a political battle about health care
https://missouriindependent.com/2023/12/11/university-of-kansas-deal-with-missouri-hospital-feels-terribly-wrong-to-lawmakers/
The proposed takeover of Liberty Hospital in Missouri by the University of Kansas Health System is being greeted with scorn by lawmakers from both sides of the state line and both political parties.
Leading the charge against the takeover in Missouri is Kansas City Democratic state Sen. Greg Razer, who said the idea of KU owning a hospital in suburban Missouri is “terribly wrong.”
“There are boundaries for a reason, and they’ve crossed one,” said Razer, a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia.
The Republican leader of the Kansas Senate also has expressed concern about the takeover, along with at least one member of Liberty Hospital’s board of trustees.
Earlier this month, Razer pre-filed a bill in the Missouri General Assembly that would put a stop to a proposed partnership between the University of Kansas Health System and Liberty Hospital by prohibiting hospital boards to partner with an out-of-state health system “operated by an institution of higher education” without voter approval.
“I can’t imagine the outrage of Missouri taxpayers if we opened up (University of Missouri) Health in Olathe, Kansas,” Razer said, calling the proposed arrangement “mind boggling.”
Liberty Hospital announced in May it was looking to partner with another health system to help it expand to meet growing demand in the Kansas City suburbs north of the Missouri River. In October, it announced it had chosen KU.
The two health systems have signed a letter of intent but are still in negotiations, and the terms of the deal are not yet available. But Liberty Hospital CEO Dr. Raghu Adiga said in an interview Friday that KU had pledged to continue the services the hospital provides, including cardiothoracic surgery and a level-two trauma center.
Adiga said those are rare for a hospital Liberty’s size.
“They put the patients first just like us,” Adiga said, “ensuring high-quality health care that we can provide right here in town.”
In a video announcing the deal in October, he said the partnership “will bring world class clinical excellence across the river to every Northlander’s doorstep.”
Razer said the arrangement would take health care dollars from Missouri to “prop up Kansas,” and feared it would be a recruiting tool for the University of Kansas.
“Liberty has a lot of high school students. … They get great grades. It’s a great school district up there. They’re all going to be driving by a Jayhawk every day in the state of Missouri,” Razer said.
Razer’s primary objection centered on the idea of having a Kansas state institution plant its flag in Missouri.
The University of Kansas Health System is governed by the University of Kansas Hospital Authority, a board established in Kansas statute, primarily appointed by the Kansas governor and affiliated with the University of Kansas School of Medicine. But the health system hasn’t been owned by the state in 25 years. It receives no state or local tax dollars.
Indiana, one of the most “red” states in the union, is struggling to keep up economically speaking
https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2023/12/13/hoosier-economic-policy-improving-slower-than-competitors-report-says/
Indiana has improved on key economic development criteria in recent years, but has still fallen in national rankings, the influential Indiana Chamber of Commerce found in a report card Tuesday.
The chamber in August released a vision for Indiana in 2035, with 31 goals for the state’s education, entrepreneurship, economic growth, energy and infrastructure, health, quality of place and workforce.
The report cards — expected to be biannual — log progress on 59 metrics related to those goals.
Compared to previous years, the state scored better on about 67% of the metrics — but its national rankings on those metrics improved just 41% of the time.
“What that tells us is that we’re improving overall — but the progress isn’t happening fast enough, because other states are improving at a faster pace,” outgoing President and CEO Kevin Brinegar told reporters Tuesday. “We need to pick up the pace.”
Indiana’s strongest performance was a third-place ranking for the 11% of Hoosiers working in knowledge- and technology-intensive industries, like manufacturing or software development.
It came in fourth for the 63% of foreign-born Hoosiers with science or engineering bachelor’s degrees, as well as for the 10% of non-white workers who are self-employed.
More Rail Service In Colorado… coming soon?
https://coloradonewsline.com/briefs/front-range-rail-development/
Front Range Passenger Rail District will get a $500,000 planning grant as part of the federal Corridor ID program, which aims to help development of intercity passenger rail projects. The idea, Bose said, is to get projects into the pipeline for implementation, eventually connecting an entire corridor of cities to rail service.
The Front Range Passenger Rail District, which was created through 2021 legislation, is planning a rail line that would connect cities between Fort Collins and Pueblo.
“Colorado is very, very well positioned in the Corridor ID program,” Bose said, partly because the district has already defined the scope of its service development program and can move forward to the second step of the program. There are “tens of millions of dollars” for project planning now that the scope is set.
The Colorado project is one of 70 that the Federal Railroad Administration selected to get money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
“The fact that we have a federal administration that’s committed to helping us dream up and execute a project like this is not an opportunity that we can take for granted. I think it shows us what kind of a moment we have,” Lew said.
Polis is pushing a housing agenda that encourages development along transit corridors, and he is likely to champion related legislation next year. Though the state is years away from putting Front Range residents onto passenger rail cars, the agenda represents a goal for people to live near their primary mode of transportation and commute more easily without adding traffic congestion.
“Coupled with bus rapid transit and transit oriented neighborhoods, passenger rail is a huge lynchpin in this vision we have for smarter growth, for improving affordability, livability and sustainability as Colorado grows,” Polis said.
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and Threads
Co-Hosts
Adam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85 (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)
Rachel Parker @msraitchetp (Post)
Sean Diller (no social)
The Heartland Collective - Sign Up Today!
JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!
“Change The Conversation”
Outro Song: “The World Is On Fire” by American Aquarium
Stay up to date
For any inquiries, please email us at hello@podcastworld.io